Kromm tabbed to build IceMen franchise

EVANSVILLE, Ind. – As the Evansville IceMen began preparing to make the jump from the single-A level AAHL to the double-A level CHL/IHL “super league”, owner Ron Geary knew that every aspect of the team had to be elevated, including the coaching staff. It wasn’t a knock on the Davidson Cup championship squad he had in front of him as much as it was a simple reality of the level move. Thursday morning, Geary was all smiles as he introduced the first piece of the puzzle when he announced that veteran coach Rich Kromm would be taking the helm as General Manager and Head Coach of the IceMen. Kromm signed a two-year deal to become the architect of Evansville’s future in hockey, a future that Geary hopes will be as productive as the 2009-2010 season had been. “We are absolutely elated to have Rich lead our hockey operations. In stepping up to a higher level and beginning a brand new era in professional hockey in Evansville, it was vital for us to find the right man for the job,” Geary said. “In thoroughly researching and essentially performing our due-diligence, all of our indicators pointed to Rich. He brings to us an exemplary winning record behind the bench and the extraordinary penchant to win championships. Today is a great day for pro hockey in Evansville with Rich Kromm now a major part of our team and community.” Kromm himself was just as excited about the chance to run the IceMen. “I am very excited about this great opportunity to come to such a wonderful community here in Evansville as General Manager and Coach,” he said. “This presents a great opportunity to build a strong foundation for a successful organization that we hope will be here for many years to come. I want to especially thank Mr. Geary for this wonderful opportunity to lead our team.” Ironically, the choice to sign with the IceMen may in actuality be almost a lateral move for Kromm. Last season, he was the coach of the IHL’s Muskegon Lumberjacks which posted a 51-20-5 record to win the Huber Trophy as the regular season champs. Along the way, the ‘Jacks had the top numbers in multiple categories including best home record (30-7-1), best road record (21-13-4) and most goals (282) while giving up the second-fewest (218). Unfortunately, they failed to get to the Turner Cup finals, losing to Flint in the first round. Following the season, the owners closed the franchise down and sold it to Geary who then relocated it to Evansville and renamed it the IceMen after the AAHL franchise suspended operations. Kromm’s success in Muskegon dates back to the days when the Muskegon Fury were members of the UHL. In three seasons (1998-2001) as the coach of the Fury, Kromm’s teams won 130 games,

made three playoff appearances and took home the Colonial Cup once (1998-1999 season). Overall, his coaching mark in Muskegon sits at 181-92-25, making Kromm the winningest coach in the modern-day history of the Fury/Lumberjacks franchise. He also was an assistant coach on the Turner Cup winning Chicago Wolves team in the original IHL in 1997-1998. Kromm’s coaching career began following an extensive playing career. The Trail, British Columbia native was drafted 37^th overall in the 1982 NHL Entry Draft. He played in 408 games with the Calgary Flames and the New York Islanders, compiling 72 goals and 109 assists. He was also a part of an AHL Calder Cup championship team when the Springfield Indians won it all in 1990. In total, Kromm played over 700 professional games before retiring in 1993. In addition to his coaching stops in Chicago and Muskegon, Kromm has spent time behind the bench for the Cincinnati Cyclones (original IHL), Carolina Monarchs (AHL), Calgary Hitmen (WHL) and the Portland Winter Hawks (WHL). All told, Kromm has over 600 professional and major junior games as a coach under his belt. Kromm undoubtedly learned quite a bit about coaching from his late father Bobby. Bobby Kromm coached the Detroit Red Wings for three seasons, including one where he won the Jack Adams Award as the NHL’s Coach of the Year. He also led the Winnipeg Jets to the WHA’s Avco Cup championship in 1976. Rich said his goal is to build a team that will skate fast, maintain puck control and aggressively forecheck – a style made famous by the Red Wings of the 1990’s. He and Geary said that the IceMen will likely begin making announcements regarding player signings within the next 7-10 days. With Geary having acquired the contract rights to most of the Lumberjacks’ players from a season ago, Kromm said he expects to have some familiar faces in the IceMen’s locker room. “We will have a strong corps of players to build around for this upcoming season,” Kromm said. “This should represent a huge advantage for us in being able to retain the rights of last season’s Muskegon team.” Contact Comment@prohockeynews.com